Invert Robotics, a company that develops inspection robots, is relocating its headquarters to Dublin after recently raising €3.5 million from backers that include State-backed Finistere Ventures.
The New Zealand-based company, which spun out from the University of Canterbury's School of Engineering in 2010, has selected Dublin as its new home as its gears up for further growth in Europe and North America.
Invert has developed climbing robots that that can cling to non-metallic surfaces, allowing organisations to inspect and maintain equipment located in hazardous, hard-to-reach or toxic environments.
Jobs
The company, which counts some of the world’s largest food production, aerospace, pharmaceutical, chemical and energy companies among its customers, said it intends to create 25 new research and development jobs locally as a result of the relocation.
The move comes as Invert has just completed its funding round, which was led by Icos Capital and existing investors, Finistere, Inception Capital Management and Yamaha Motor Ventures.
The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) is an indirect investor in Invert through its investment in Finistere Ventures and its support was seen as critical in facilitating the company's move to Ireland.
ISIF previously teamed up with Finistere in 2017 to invest in two agritech funds, one of which is an Irish-focused one.
Invert has plans to establish an expanded research and development team in the Republic over the next three years. It will take on an initial 25 people with the majority of the new roles in data science.
The company, which has raised almost $20 million to date according to Pitchbook, has plans to secure further capital from Irish and international investors in the near future to facilitate accelerated growth through diversification and expansion into new sectors and industries.
Disruptor
"We're delighted to establish a new global headquarters in Dublin for our expanding business. We've found Ireland's business environment to be highly supportive of fast-scaling businesses like ours, and we very much look forward to tapping into the local talent pool as we build out our technical capabilities," said managing director of Invert Robotics Neil Fletcher.
“Moving a business to a new country across the other side of the world is a complex process but our professional advisers in Ireland, our local banking partner and a host of other supporting organisations including ISIF made our experience seamless,” he added.
Nick Ashmore, director of ISIF, said the arrival of another technology disruptor to the Republic "further strengthen our position as a global hub for pioneering technology firms".
